Guidelines for Discussions

Instructor may wish to modify the discussion requirements, adjust or drop the student moderators, or revise the rubric. See the Self-Assessment rubric in the course "Files" and "Assignments" also.

What are Online Discussions for? How should I participate?

If you are new to online learning, you might not yet be familiar with the importance of discussion forums or expectations around their use. By presenting students with challenging questions that require critical thinking and analysis, online discussions allow you an opportunity to interact with your classmates and to engage directly and deeply with the learning material. Contributions in discussions, interaction with your classmates, and participation in the group work is a fundamental part of this class. Through these interactions the course takes on a life of its own, connecting the academic part of the class to both our own experiences and to real-world applications.

Watch the following video for a quick introduction and overview of Online Discussions.Online Discussions Links to an external site.

What are the Requirements for Posting on the Discussion Forums?

1.) Initial post:

First, students should respond to the prompt posted by the instructor. Responses should be approximately 400-word entries and must directly make reference to required readings and course materials. Please add your initial post by the due date in the syllabus.

2.) Responses to classmate:

Students are also asked to respond thoughtfully and constructively to at least two (2) other posts of your classmates. Respond in a way that deepens and enriches the conversation (see below for more information on what that means). You should complete these response posts by the week following the initial postings, as the class will be moving onward to another topic – however, if you and your classmates are still engaged in a previous topic, don’t feel you need to abandon your conversation either.

3.) If you are assigned to be a Discussions Moderator for that Discussion:

Your role and participation will be a bit more central, and you’ll be posting more than the other non-Moderator students. While that Discussion is active, you will spend a bit more time, care, and attention than your non-Moderator classmates in order to ask probing questions, and provide meaningful prompts that encourage other students to expand on their arguments in a critical way. You should also seek to draw connections between the posts made by different people, and help to express common themes that are arising in the discussion. You shouldn’t try to dominate or take over the discussion, but instead do your best to keep the discussion lively, running smoothly and on subject, and to encourage your classmates to more deeply explore their thoughts and opinions.

How Will I Be Assessed on my Discussion Board Participation?

Firstly, refer to your Syllabus for information regarding grading and due dates for initial posts and follow-up responses.

At the end of the term, you will be asked to complete a Self-Assessment for Discussions (see Assignments) of your work on the discussion forums across the duration of the course. You will use the following rubric for this purpose. For now, keep these criteria in mind as you draft your initial and response posts, and act as Discussion Moderator.

	0	1	2	3
Quality of Initial posts	Information has little relevance to subject and/or reiterates basic course principles. No references or supporting experiences included.	Information is directly related to subject matter. Information is not supported by examples or arguments. Personal experience included, but no references to readings or research.	Information is directly related to subject matter. Information is supported with one example or argument. Some references from literature & personal experience included.	Information is directly related to subject matter and new concepts or data are introduced. Information is supported with examples and/or arguments. References to literature, readings or personal experience used to support comments.
Quality of Responses to classmates	Answers instructor questions only.	Responds to others in a superficial or basic way.	Responds to others in ways that deepen and enrich the content presented.	Responds to others in ways that deepen and enrich the conversation, encouraging & facilitating further discussion between participants.
Presence as Discussion Moderation	Did not complete Discussion Moderator duties.	While acting as Moderator, conversation prompts were superficial or basic.	While acting as Moderator, conversation prompts helped to deepen and enrich the content presented, and make some connections between different conversations.	While acting as Moderator, conversation prompts helped to deepen and enrich the conversation, encouraging & facilitating further discussion between participants, connect conversations happening in the class, and elucidate common emerging themes.

 

What are the expectations of “Netiquette” in Online Discussions?

• Participate: This is a shared learning environment. No lurking in the cyberspace background. It is not enough to login and read the discussion thread of others. For the maximum benefit to all, everyone must contribute.
• Use an Avatar or Profile Picture: If you are comfortable doing so, set your account up with a simple and (ideally) professional-looking avatar or profile picture of yourself. It will help your classmates and instructor get to know you more quickly. This is an extension of your professional / scholarly self, so don’t include any sensitive or offensive content within your profile picture. See the following link for help: How do I add a profile picture in my user account as a student? Links to an external site.
• Report Glitches: Discussion forums are electronic and there may be, on occasion, technical difficulties. If for any reason you are having difficulty participating, please contact the university IT help desk first. If problems persist, let your instructor know – chances are your classmates are experiencing similar issues.
• Help Your Classmates: You may have more experience with online discussion forums than some of your classmates. Give them a hand. Show them it’s not that hard. They’re really going to appreciate it!
• Respect Your Classmates: Read everything in the discussion thread before replying. This will help you avoid repeating something someone else has already contributed. Acknowledge the points made with which you agree and suggest alternatives for those with which you don’t.
• Be Brief: You want to be clear—and to articulate your point—without being preachy or pompous. Be direct. Stay on point. Don’t lose your readers in an overly wordy sentence or paragraph.
• Respect Diversity: It’s a multi-cultural world in which we live. Use no language that is offensive—or could be construed as such— toward others. Racist, sexist, and heterosexist comments are unacceptable, as are derogatory and/or sarcastic jokes directed at, for example, religious beliefs, disabilities, or age. The University of Saskatchewan is committed to ongoing efforts towards Reconciliation Links to an external site. between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Canadians, and as an institution situated in Treaty 6 Territory and the Homeland of the Métis, has a particular responsibility to foster learning environments that are welcoming and safe for all students. These efforts extend to online discussion forums and must be shared by all students, faculty, and staff.
• Writing Style: Content-wise, write as if you were writing a term paper. Correct spelling, grammatical construction and sentence structure are expected in every writing activity associated with scholarship and academic engagement. This includes online discussions. However, the medium is different than a term paper, so if it helps to illustrate your point, provide sufficient evidence and support for your argument, or humanize your position, your posts can also incorporate hyperlinks and embedded media (like images, videos, social media posts/tweets, and GIFs) as needed.
• Cite Your Sources: Another big must! If your contribution to the conversation includes the intellectual property (authored material) of others, e.g., books, newspaper, magazine, or journal articles—online or print—they must be given proper attribution. This applies too if you are sharing someone else’s idea! Add a short “References” or “Works Cited” list at the end of your post, if needed.
• Constructive Criticism: Criticism must be constructive, well-meaning, and well-articulated. Above all, criticism of the ideas and contributions of others must be done respectfully. Rants directed at or about any of your classmates are simply unacceptable and will not be tolerated.
• Respond Fruitfully: Neither you nor your classmates will learn much by responding with something like: “Wow, good post, I agree.” You should seek to drive the conversation forward using thoughtful comments that broaden, deepen, and/or enrich the topic at hand.
• Edit and Proofread: Before you send them, review your written posts and responses to ensure that you’ve conveyed exactly what you intended. This is an excellent opportunity to practice your proofreading, revision, and rewriting skills—valuable assets in the professional world! Read your post out loud before hitting the send button. This will tell you a lot about whether your grammar and sentence structure are correct, your tone is appropriate, and your contribution clear or not.
• Lastly, You Can’t Unring the Bell! Language is your only tool in an online environment. You leave an electronic footprint behind. Be mindful: your classmates' perception of you is one of your own making. Once you’ve hit the send button, you'll find your statements harder to retract.

 

Netiquette portion adapted from Netiquette: Ground Rules for Online Discussions Links to an external site. by Peter Connor (CC-BY-NC-SA 4.0). This whole document is also licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Links to an external site.